


Our Souls to Save

by CatKing_Catkin



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Brotherly Love, Determination, Epic Friendship, Friendship, Gen, Happy, Love, Non-Binary Frisk, Pacifist Route, Parent-Child Relationship, Rescue Missions, Soul Bond, Spoilers - Pacifist Route, Video Game Mechanics
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-07
Updated: 2015-11-07
Packaged: 2018-04-30 12:34:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,048
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5164031
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CatKing_Catkin/pseuds/CatKing_Catkin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Seems SAVING the game really is impossible. But, maybe, with what little power you have...you can SAVE something else." </p><p>The fate of their friends, the fate of all monsters, is depending on Frisk and their determination. But as they face off against the God of Hyperdeath, against the most powerful being to ever live, Frisk can't help but wonder if even they and their determination are strong enough to save them all. </p><p>But that's the secret, of course. In this fight, for this cause, they could never be truly alone. Friendship always finds a way.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Our Souls to Save

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ynfernalis](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ynfernalis/gifts).



> I admit, I was kind of surprised how many people went into this stage of the True Pacifist final boss thinking that you could only save one of your friends. Maybe if I'd gone into it unspoiled, I might have worried that, too.
> 
> So after hearing some other people talk about it, about their thought process in who to save and when, I wanted to play around with that idea in-universe. I wondered what Frisk might have thought. And this was the result! And boy, was it a rush. This boss fight is just...so emotional, in all the best ways. I really needed to write this. I'm glad I finally did. 
> 
> It was reading ynfernalis' thoughts on this fight that ultimately prompted the fic itself, though, and the ideas behind it. So in honor of her, here you all are! I hope you enjoy it.

Frisk was so tired. 

Asriel's power seemed limitless, as boundless as the pain that drove him to fighting and taking and destroying. Their friends were trapped within him, and every time the child had to drag the torn halves of their soul back together, their friends forgot Frisk a little more. 

Frisk would fight. Frisk couldn't imagine stopping fighting now. They knew that, if they let their soul call out deep within Asriel's, one of their friends would answer.

It was just a matter of who to call for. 

Because Frisk was determined, but Frisk was tired, and Asriel was determined, too. 

They were determined to save who they could, but didn't know if they could save more than one. 

Time, already warped and twisted around them, seemed to slow to a crawl as the weight of the decision engulfed the child like deep, dark water. They couldn't choose, but they had to choose,  becaues  every second was a second that their friends were being taken further and further  away. They loved all their friends, they loved every monster that was trapped in the dark, how could they ever place one above the others?

And Asriel wouldn't give them much time at all to think. 

Their first thought was to call for Toriel, the one who had first made them feel safe, the one who had offered a home that they dearly wished now that they'd accepted. Yet Toriel was Asriel's mother, and he'd been apart from her for so long. If there was one soul he would fight like mad to keep, it would be hers'. 

Their next thought was to call for  Undyne , the Underground's greatest and most valiant hero, a monster almost strong enough to wield determination herself. Yet Undyne's strength might just let her fight on and hold on to herself longer than any of the others. Besides, she would never forgive Frisk for choosing her over Alphys, or Asore, or Papyrus...

They wanted so much to call for Papyrus and Sans. If Toriel was the first one to give them safety, the brothers had been the first one to give them _hope_ \- hope that the Underground wasn't as dangerous as it seemed, hope that the conflict between their people could be ended with friendship and peace, hope that they didn't have to make this journey alone. 

Frisk wanted to save them both, but didn't know if they had the strength anymore to save more than one. 

Terrified and alone, teetering on the weight of an impossible decision, for a moment they ached to choose Sans. Sans, who had guided and protected them, who had looked them in the eye and smiled at the end and told them that they'd done a good job. The smaller skeleton had explained things about this world that no one else had ever thought to, and in doing so, had at last given Frisk some measure of peace.

They didn't want to repay that guidance by leaving Sans alone in the dark to lose himself.

And yet Sans would never forgive them either, for choosing him over Papyrus. Sans would never want his brother to be saved over himself. If they saved him and he did, then he was already irreparably lost. 

"Papyrus, _please_. Help me."

Their first friend. The one who had been there in voice and spirit if not in body for almost this entire journey. Frisk focused on everything about him, and called out. Bad spaghetti and battle bodies and a cell phone number they could dial in their sleep by now, blue stop signs and action figures and  racecars  and dreams and laughter...

Frisk felt time and space spin around them, felt the darkness open and yawn. They  felt Asriel's presence fade, and another take its place. A Lost Soul, responding to their call.

No, not just one, but two. 

Frisk opened their eyes, and saw, and laughed aloud with relief, enough to feel their heart soar with it. 

They shouldn't have felt relieved, perhaps. The two figures standing there were unnaturally still, their faces blurred into unrecognizability by Asriel's hold over their souls. But Frisk saw a red scarf on one, and a blue coat on the other, and realized that they'd been foolish from the start. 

Alone, they might have had the power to save only one soul. 

But they weren't alone in trying to save their friends. They weren't the only one who wanted Sans to be okay, even now. Papyrus would never leave his brother alone. Sans would always be there when Papyrus called for him. 

It was almost graceful, the way they moved together, their gestures mirroring one another perfectly. Frisk felt their soul turn blue, saw blue and white bones arching towards them from above and below, apparently from nowhere. They didn't even hesitate before leaping and ducking. The movements came as easily as a dance. They even laughed a little at how familiar it was, and didn't stop laughing when a stray bone knocked them in the ankle and sent them tumbling back to the unseen floor. 

The two skeletons clearly remembered one another, even if only on some level deeper than words. That meant they must remember that Frisk was their friend, even if Frisk would have to draw those memories out.

"Papyrus!" Frisk cried, leaping back to their feet and staring up at the taller skeleton. "After this is done, can you cook me something to eat?"

The reaction was immediate. His hand stuttered and shook in the air as it called more bones up to attack, and Frisk easily leaped over the tiny, slow-moving little white one that was all that ultimately appeared.

_"I MUST CAPTURE A HUMAN!"_ one Lost Soul cried. Yet almost seemed as though, beneath the harsh, cold words, Frisk could hear something like joy bubbling up. The words were empty, the relic of despair and loneliness he'd left behind even if he didn't remember that he had. His voice was not. In his voice, Frisk heard their friend. 

_"just give up,"_ the other said. _"_ _ i  did."  _ __

Frisk hopped and ducked and leaped, and landed before the other Lost Soul instead. "Sans! You look tired! Why don't you take a break from fighting me?" 

He hesitated. His shoulders slumped, his body listed. His face was obscured, but Frisk could easily imagine eyelids drooping. He wanted to take a break. They could tell. _"why even try?"_ __

_"THEN EVERYONE WILL...!"_ It almost seemed as though the taller skeleton had forgotten how to finish. 

"I'll think about what you said, Sans," Frisk said. "Not now, but before. I'll think about everything I've done. I won't forget. I promise."

_ "you'll never see 'em again." _

_No,_ Frisk thought, with a renewed surge of determination. _I don't like that idea._ So they wouldn't let it be true. 

The Lost Soul with the red scarf said nothing. Frisk could feel that their despair had already broken. It was only concern for the other Lost Soul that was keeping him bound here.

That was okay. They knew that one more push would free them both.

"Hey, guys," Frisk said. They took hold of one's hand, and then reached out for the other's. They felt the two brothers shudder and shake for a moment, and then felt bony fingers close over their own. The child looked up at the taller skeleton, and smiled their brightest smile. "Do you know why I'm fighting so hard to save you? It's because I love you...a skele- _ton_!"

It was the worst, most accurate bad joke about skeletons they could think of at the moment. One Lost Soul obviously hated it. The other obviously loved it. And then...

"NO, WAIT!" Papyrus cried, as though waking up from a dream. He looked down at the child and laughed,  squeezing  their hand. "YOU'RE MY FRIEND! I COULD NEVER CAPTURE YOU."

On their other side, Sans laughed as well, and moved to muss Frisk's hair with his other hand. "nah," he agreed, with a wink. " i'm  rootin' for ya, kid."

And then they were gone, but only from Frisk's sight. In their heart, they could still feel the support of their friends, and it sent a fresh wave of strength through their body. 

This time, they didn't even hesitate before reaching out to call  Undyne . This time, they didn't reach out alone. Frisk thought of tea and spaghetti that wasn't quite as bad, of passion and shields and spears, of history and letters and laughter and big, broad smiles...

"Undyne! Don't give up!" 

_ "YOU CAN'T LEAVE US, UNDYNE! MY LIFE WILL BE SO MUCH LESS COOL WITHOUT YOU!" _

Undyne could never ignore her friends. Undyne could never give up. In the depths of Asriel's soul, Frisk felt something resonating, and then...

...their soul turned green, and a shield appeared in their hand as their feet felt rooted to the spot. That was okay. They'd learned now to face danger head-on. 

The Lost Soul stood before them. She looked so much then like she had when Frisk had first met her, a terrifying and unstoppable  apparition with no face and no purpose but to kill. But that wasn't true. Frisk knew better, now. 

"Undyne ! When all of this is over, can you teach me more about how to cook?"

Her hand shook as she drew back her spear to begin the attack. Her knuckles stood out pale against her skin. The Lost Soul sounded as though she were speaking through gritted teeth, as though she was being physically held back from springing into a lesson there and then. _"All humans must die!"_ __

Spears came arrowing out of the darkness from the front and back, the right and left. Frisk spun like a top, blocking one and then another and then another with their shield. They didn't catch all of them - one grazed Frisk's shoulder, tearing their shirt. But the pain barely registered. It was okay. It was all going to be okay. 

They couldn't move, when their soul was green. So instead, Frisk willed the Lost Soul closer. With all their might, with all their strength, they imagined the distance between them to be less than it was, less than arm's reach. 

The Lost Soul strode forward - maybe to attack Frisk directly, maybe not. Either way, Frisk attacked first...if you could call it an attack. "Watch out, Undyne!" Really, all they did was tap their knuckles as lightly as they possibly could against her stomach. _Doink!_ they thought, and giggled.

Something about the way they "fought" was obviously familiar to the Lost Soul. She took a step back, shaking her head as though to banish a stray thought, and Frisk let themselves believe that the spears that shot out of the darkness in her place were slower, now, less sharp.

_ "You are our real enemy!" _

" _No_ ," said Frisk, firmly. "I'm not. We're not just friends,  Undyne ..." They smiled, broad and bright, up at the Lost Soul. They offered the biggest smile they could, just like they knew she loved to give. "...we're _besties_!"

The Lost Soul remembered - Frisk could see the memories rushing back. And then Undyne laughed, the sort of laugh you felt in your bones, and held out a hand to the child with a smile of her own.

"Well, some humans are okay...I guess," she admitted. 

She vanished from Frisk's sight, but stood at their side, and together they reached out for Alphys. 

_ "Come on, Alphys, we've only just gotten started!"  _

"Alphys, we're here for you!" Frisk focused on noodles eaten cooked or raw, on history books  that weren't accurate but maybe they should have been. She thought of  Mettaton  sitting safe and sleeping on a workbench, of smiley-faces and status updates, of mistakes made, of what it meant to be a hero...

Alphys' soul was slow to respond, timid and shy even now despite how far she'd come. But they didn't hesitate or waver in their call, friendship and love resonating with her heart, and so she came at last. 

"Alphys, I'm glad you're here!" Frisk called, laughing. "I was wondering if you could tell me about your favorite anime!"

The Lost Soul danced a little from foot-to-foot, her tail wagging this way and that with apparent excitement. She was clearly being held back from giving the most enormous possible answer, even if her voice was hopeless when she spoke. _"You hate me, don't you?"_ __

_ Not at all, Alphys. Not at all.  _

They realized why they'd thought of  Mettaton , because it was  Mettaton's  attacks that the Lost Soul sent at them, only to get shot down and shot to pieces by Frisk's soul. Or maybe  Mettaton's  attacks had started out as her attacks. Not that it mattered now. The two of them were friends, just like the scientist was Frisk's friend, and so of course they would share such things. 

As they danced and spun between tiny robots, they thought nothing of reaching into their pocket even as one exploded just behind their head. Frisk pulled out their cell phone, and dialed the Lost Soul's phone number. 

Even with her face obscured by anxiety and darkness and despair, she could see the Lost Soul start to sweat at the very idea of talking on the phone. Frisk fancied that the falling line of bombs and blocks that came down towards them were rather more frantic than they had been last time, almost as though the Lost Soul was hoping to distract them. 

_ "I've got to keep lying."  _

Frisk didn't let themselves get distracted. They shot down the bombs with one hand, ducked the explosions with neat little hops to the left and right. 

"Hey, Alphys. I know you don't like talking on the phone. But I was just calling to say...I'm your friend, and no matter what, I'll always support you."

The bombs that had been circling Frisk to attack vanished with a rush like an indrawn breath. Frisk could see the memories come flooding back to the Lost Soul, and then Alphys clapped her hands and smiled, even as tears of emotion gathered behind her glasses.

"My friends like me," she said with confidence. "And...I like you!" 

She was gone, and then she was there, and they all called out together

_ "Come on, big guy, you've never let anything keep you down!"  _

_ "W-We don't have to fight anymore,  Asgore . Our mistakes don't have to keep us here!" _

_ "WHY WOULD EITHER OF YOU EVER BE SAD WHEN YOU HAVE FRIENDS LIKE US?" _

_ "come on, toriel,  i've  got way too many puns and you're way too good of an audience." _

"Asgore, I forgive you," Frisk said, feeling tears in their eyes as all the love in their friends' hearts poured into their own. "Toriel...I've missed you so much."

In the depths of Asriel's soul, something resonated. It was hard. It was a fight to reach them - Asriel didn't want to let them go again. Frisk wished they didn't have to do this...but neither did they stop. 

Then two more Lost Souls stood tall, side-by-side - one in a faded gown bearing the royal crest, one in a crown that left his head bowed beneath its weight. 

Frisk stood tall with the support of their friends at their back, even as the air grew hotter and hotter with the threat of fire. 

"I won't fight you," they said, staring up at the king. "I won't hurt you. No matter what." 

His breathing grew funny for a moment. 

_ "This is for your own good." _

_ "Forgive me for this." _

Circles of fire spun in around them, tighter and tighter. Yet always, always, there was a safe place to stand. These two could never want to hurt anyone that entirely. Frisk ducked and dodged through the flames, close enough to feel the heat on their face, to stand before the Queen.

"Hey, Toriel," they said, smiling up at her. "You remember what my favorite is, right? I prefer butterscotch...but cinnamon's not bad, either."

She didn't so much as twitch in surprise, but that in and of itself was heartening. After all, she must remember that she'd heard that once before. 

_ "This is my duty." _

_ "No one will ever leave again!"  _

Ropes of fire uncoiled from their hands, lashing through the darkness and making it bright for a moment. It barely singed Frisk when a trailing end of it caught their arm, or when another brushed against their back. This fire, for all that it blazed, somehow never managed to be more than pleasantly warm now. 

"I'm going to save everyone!" they declared to the king, arms thrown wide to encompass them, their other friends, all of monsters and humans together. "I promise!" 

Something seemed to stir within the Lost Soul. He stood straighter, taller, because no matter how much life had taken from him, no matter how heavy the weight of that crown, he had borne up under greater hardships for the sake of his people. A true King would not give up now, and he was a true King. 

Frisk barely bothered dodging the fire as they turned at last to the Queen. They barely needed to. Instead, they simply raced forward, heedless of the flames, and threw their arms around her as they'd been aching to do since the doors of the Ruins closed behind them.

"I'm going to see you again," they sobbed. "Soon."

The Lost Soul wrapped her arms around them. The other laid a broad, gentle hand on the child's head.

"You are our future," said  Asgore  with conviction.

"Your fate is up to you now," said Toriel with a proud smile. 

Then they were gone, but only from Frisk's sight. They felt the two, there in their heart, safe and happy and strong once more.

But the fight  wasn't  over. There were still so many monsters left to save.

Including one that had gone unsaved for much, much too long. 

In the depths of the soul of the God of Hyperdeath, Frisk felt Asriel's soul resonating, reaching out.   


Frisk reached back. No matter how he battered and beat them, if it took them to the very last dregs of power their soul possessed...they wouldn't leave him alone any longer, either.   


They would save him, too. 


End file.
